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Although all hospitals take precautions to minimize the risk of infection during a joint replacement surgery, it can happen. Glendale Adventist Medical Center's orthopedic specialists are recognized by their peers for providing exceptional tertiary care for patients that present complex joint infections or failed surgeries. Patients across the nation with such problems have been referred to GAMC orthopedic specialists for treatment.
According to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, infected joints occur in two percent of all joint replacement patients. The infection may present itself any time after a joint replacement surgery. Often the cause of the infection is unknown. The infection can force the prosthesis to loosen, causing intense pain and the need for a revision surgery.
Through a well-established multi-disciplinary approach, GAMC orthopedic surgeons work with infectious disease specialists to treat each patient.
Treatment for revision joint replacement surgeries may include:
- Removing the infected implant
- Putting in a prosthetic spacer
- Eradicating the infection
- Re-implantation of a stable and functional prosthesis
While the orthopedic experts at GAMC have excelled in offering such procedures to patients in need, they encourage everyone to take precautions, such as the ones listed by the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons.
Following your surgery, you should take antibiotics prior to dental work or any surgical procedure that could allow bacteria to enter your bloodstream. There are several warning signs indicating possible infection, and you should notify your doctor immediately if you develop any of these symptoms. Symptoms may include:
- Persistent fever (higher than 100 degrees orally).
- Shaking chills.
- Increasing redness, tenderness or swelling of the wound.
- Drainage from the wound.
- Increasing pain with both activity and rest.
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